New Year’s Eve was leisurely, drifting around the sunny beach in the day and sitting fireside, with four new friends, by night. We stared at the fire and chatted and they sweetly shared Glühwein (hot wine) and peanuts. At midnight a traditional New Year’s Greek cake and champagne were brought out and I was overwhelmed by their generosity. I found the coin in my slice of cake which means good luck for the coming year. The stars were so beautiful I sat and looked at them outside of the fire-light when I got back to my van and saw a shooting star, how wonderful, I couldn’t have been happier. Let’s hope 2022 is as lucky as all these good omens.

New Year’s Day 2022

New Year’s day started with a bright blue sky and warm sunshine, I opened all the van doors, wound down the front windows, took everything out the back and had a big clean up. I sorted the wood and chopped all the longer pieces into mini-cyclops size (my burner) and hung all my bedding on the olive trees. It felt the perfect day for sorting and cleaning, getting rid of 2021, gently.  Afterwards, I sat on the beach in my chair with the waves literally at my feet and continued reading 100 years of solitude, a book I had first read when I was 17. It had a huge impact on me then, I thought it was extraordinary, and still do. What has surprised me is that I remember so much of it, nearly 35 years later and that it seems as if I’d just finished it for the first time. New year is always a time to remember how quickly time passes and how little we really have in a human life. Best to spend it wisely.